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Residents evacuated from village in Belize

Published on Monday, November 10, 2008 Email To Friend    Print Version

By Oscar Ramjeet
Caribbean Net News Special Correspondent
Email: oscar@caribbeannetnews.com  

BELMOPAN, Belize: For more than three weeks, parts of Belize have been experiencing the worst flooding in recent times. The waters came from the Peten area in neighbouring Guatemala, moved to southern Belize and continued across the country.

Channel 5 Belize reported that many communities had been picking up the pieces following tropical depression 16 and, as a result, in the village of Douglas, located in the Orange Walk District off the Northern Highway, waters from Rio Hondo came down with full force and forced 540 residents to relocate due to threats of diseases.

The entrance to Douglas village is closed, cordoned off and guarded by two Belize Defence Force soldiers, Channel 5 reported. Access to the village is restricted since contaminated floodwater prompted the National Emergency Managing Organization (NEMO) to quarantine the entire village.

NEMO Communication Officer, Daniel Luna reported that all pit latrines in that area have overflowed causing contamination and forcing the authorities to quarantine the area.
 
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